Monday, February 17, 2014

February 17-21, 2014

Dear Families and Friends,

Wow, wow, wow!!! Can you all believe that we have had 3 snow days, 101 Days of School, Chocolate Fever, and Valentine's Day - all within weeks of each other. It has been a C R A Z Y month! By the way, have I said, "Thank you for the wonderfully sweet and thoughtful gifts that your children gave to me on Valentine's Day!"? Thank you so very much! From the moment the children walked into class on Friday in their jammies (because they had "Chocolate Fever), to working out a Valentine's Day math mystery with their 4th grade buddies, and on to sharing their Valentine's Day cards and treats with each other, then writing about their imaginary Chocolate Fever rashes, to having our "Valentine's Day celebration, our day was a non-stop ton of fun! During our celebration, students traveled from country to country, trying fruit, cheeses, salty snacks, home-made organic juice, and ice cream. The children were beaming with excitement all day long! They probably spent the weekend burning off calories and exercising muscles by running and playing with their friends, while I spent the weekend eating chocolates and smelling roses, of course! One weekend out of the year won't kill me, will it? :) 


Math:  The Count On subtraction strategy is introduced in this unit. The primary strategy for subtraction is “Think Addition;” therefore, students need to have mastered the Count On addition facts prior to introducing the Count On subtraction strategy.  Count On Addition (5+1=6, count on one example) was introduced in the fall semester.  Students will be working on problem solving situations during this time as well.

Reading Workshop:  This week we will focus on learning about the holiday: President's Day and introducing a new genre for reading: Historical Fiction.  We will learn about George Washington and Abraham Lincoln and why we celebrate this holiday.  The students will compare and contrast the two presidents.  Look for them in the hallways!  We will also focus on identifying a new genre called Historical Fiction. The students will learn what it is and the characteristics that make up this genre.

Writing Workshop: As we have been reading and writing about famous inventors and presidents, we will be focusing our attention specifically on timelines this week. We will discuss different places that we can find timelines, why timelines are important to us, how they can benefit our lives, and various different types of timelines. We will begin brainstorming and organizing our own 1st Grade timeline.

Science:  This week we will learn about seasons, day and night.  We will learn that each season is different. The nature looks different in each season and the weather changes from season to season. As a result we do different activities in each season.  We will also learn how day and night are different and how we see different objects in the sky during day and night.

Habit #7:  Sharpen the Saw.  I take care of myself.  I spend time with family and friends.  I find meaningful ways to help others. 

Reminders:
*Please remember to send a healthy snack every day.  Snack time is @ 9:30am.
*Make sure your child wears tennis shoes every Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday.
*Library day is Thursday.
*Please remember to send back your child’s homework bag back every Friday.
*It helps me tremendously if you leave the reading response notebook and books in the homework bag every day.  

Dates to remember:
February 17:  Bad Weather Make Up Day- We will have school this day!
March 1:  Family Dinner Night
March 3-4:  Turkey Trot
March 10-14:  Spring Break
March 19:  Early Release Day
     Family Skate Night
March 24:  Turkey Trot Make-up
April 2:  Spirit Night
May 1:  Talent Show (K-3)
May 2:  Field Day
          Talent Show (4-5)
May 5-9:  Teacher Appreciation Week
May 7:  Early Release Day
May 9:  Career Day
May 12-16:  Book Fair
May 29:  End of the Year Party
May 30:  Last day of school!


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